


A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes

by Copperstown



Series: The One Direction Disney AU Extravaganza [1]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Disney AU, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-06
Updated: 2013-08-06
Packaged: 2017-12-22 14:13:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/914156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Copperstown/pseuds/Copperstown
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cinderella AU.</p><p>It’s the weirdest shoe Zayn has seen, by far. It’s an ankle boot in crisp white silk with a solid silver sole and tiny clear diamonds shaping out random patterns. How exactly the man managed to drop it is a mystery.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes

**Author's Note:**

> I'm gonna write a lot of Disney AUs. This is the first one.

A small part of Zayn takes time to find it very odd that his father is more upset about the turn of events than he is himself. After all, **he’s** the one who got dumped by his dance partner for no apparent reason, not his dad, and all that’s left of the mystery man is a shoe. The servant that had found it on the front steps of the palace had looked panicked when she handed it to Zayn, and he wonders what his father had said to the servants about the ball to make her react like that.

It’s the weirdest shoe Zayn has seen, by far. It’s an ankle boot in crisp white silk with a solid silver sole and tiny clear diamonds shaping out random patterns. How exactly the man managed to drop it is a mystery, but at the same time, it’s not a surprise, because there are no buckles or laces, and the boot is very smooth.

Zayn is turning it in his hands when the door to his bedchambers slams open, and he doesn’t even have to look up to know who it is.

“What’s this?” Louis is the only one who doesn’t knock first. “Why are you in here all on your lonesome?”

“My dance partner ran off,” Zayn replies.

“How rude,” Louis says and sits down on the bed next to Zayn. “But you did find someone then?”

“I did,” Zayn confirms with a small nod. “And he’s perfect. He’s sweet and informal, he didn’t care about my title, he could make me blush –”

“Not that anyone can tell with your complexion, you lucky sod.”

“– and he was funny and charming, and…” Zayn trails off with a sigh.

“So why did Mr. Perfect run off then?” Louis asks.

“I don’t know,” Zayn sighs. Louis frowns. “He didn’t say. But on the stroke of midnight he took off like he was being chased. And for no reason. Or at least, he didn’t give me one. He just said sorry and ran. He didn’t even stop long enough to tell me his name.”

“Hold on, you don’t know his name?” Louis doesn’t sound all that impressed with Zayn’s lack of information.

“No, unfortunately,” Zayn replies, which only makes Louis look officially, thoroughly unimpressed.

“Right, well, you’re in trouble,” he says bluntly. “Because your dad is very adamant that you find someone to marry, that’s what the whole ball was for. And now you found one, but you didn’t get enough information to actually **find** them again later. Your dad is gonna be so angry with you, you do realize that, right?”

“Yes, Louis, I know,” Zayn says and rolls his eyes. Sometimes, Louis’ sass can be too much.

“So how are you planning on getting him back?” Louis asks.

“I don’t know,” Zayn replies and looks back at the shoe in his hands.

“You are planning on getting him back, right?” Louis frowns. Zayn gives him a look and nods. “Good, good. Now you just need – what is with that shoe?”

“Oh, it’s his. He lost it when he ran,” Zayn explains and hands the shoe to Louis so he can look at it properly. Louis takes it and turns holds it up close to his face. “It’s the only lead I have.”

“That and his looks and charm,” Louis mumbles.

“That too,” Zayn concedes. Louis manages to elbow him in the ribs without looking away from the shoe. “Ow, idiot.”

“So you need to find the owner of this shoe?” Louis asks and finally looks back at Zayn.

“Yes.”

“Go door to door. Ask them if they recognize the shoe,” Louis says almost instantly. Zayn leans back and blinks at him.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” he asks skeptically. “People would no doubt want to get their hands on it. And plus, if they know I’m going door to door looking for the owner so I can ask him to marry me, don’t you think they’ll lie just to get that chance? I’m the most eligible bachelor in the entire kingdom, I’m going to be king one day. They’ll be tripping over their own feet to get closer to me.”

By the time he’s finished, Zayn knows it’s more than a bad idea, it’s a horrible idea.

“Ah, but I know how to make sure that doesn’t happen,” Louis says smugly.

“Really?” Zayn questions. Louis nods. He looks very proud of himself. “How?”

“Just say you’ve found this shoe, and you wish to return it to the owner, nothing else, but you need to see the other one as proof that it truly belongs to them,” Louis explains.

“That,” Zayn says slowly. “Might just work. But won’t it be weird that the crown prince is going door to door just to return a lost item?”

“Maybe, but people can’t directly question the crown prince’s motives,” Louis points out. “You can say it’s to bring you closer to the people, or that you want to know where he got it. Either way, it should work. It should take some time, but it should work.”

“Right,” Zayn straightens up and repeats, this time enthusiastically, “Right. I’ll start tomorrow.”

“I’ll go with you. Keep you company. Make sure you don’t do anything foolish,” Louis says and puts an arm around Zayn’s shoulders. Zayn rolls his eyes in response. “You can stop that. You’d be forever lost without me. I don’t know what you’d do if you didn’t have me around.”

“I’d probably get in a lot less trouble.”

That gets him shoved hard enough to fall on the bed with a laugh.

 

The first day is absolutely fruitless. No one has ever seen the shoe before, not on their own feet or anyone else’s.

The second day is the same. Louis and Zayn continue nonetheless, still excited and enthusiastic. Zayn’s father had told them to take all the time they needed, if it meant Zayn would actually get married.

The third day takes them beyond the immediate court and nobilities, and brings them to the rich with no title, those who have gained their fortune some other way. It still doesn’t bring them any results, and Zayn has to remind himself that the evening actually happened, that he didn’t imagine it. He has to remind himself to stay positive, his perfect man is out there somewhere. The shoe is proof of that. Louis gives him a slap around the head for being disheartened so quickly.

The fourth day is very different. They’re still visiting the rich households. While the kingdom may not be that big, in comparison to others, it’s very wealthy and has a high standard of living, so going through the rich households will take a while. However, there are fewer servants, and the ones that are there don’t announce Zayn and Louis like servants had in the beginning. The servant that opens the door of a large grey mansion with a slightly unruly front garden doesn’t announce them. She merely ushers them inside and heads off to fetch the lady of the house. Apparently Lady Edwards is a widower.

Apparently Lady Edwards is a widower with two daughters, who had apparently been at the ball, and she tries to push them towards Zayn, but he brushes her off. He has no interest in her daughters, and he’s getting a little tired of people continuously trying to push their own children on him.

“I’m here about a shoe that was found after the ball the other night,” he tells Lady Edwards.

“Really?” she inquires, raising her eyebrows. It’s almost enough to convince Zayn that she hasn’t already heard it through the gossip mill. Almost, but not quite.

“Yes. It was found during the cleanup. One of the guests must have lost it. I wish to return it to its owner,” he says.

“Of course. You are most generous. How may I help you?” Lady Edwards asks. On its own, it seems like a nice sentiment, but something about her eyes and her voice makes Zayn want to take a step back. He doesn’t like her.

“I’d like to see your household. Your entire household,” he replies. Lady Edwards nods and barks out a harsh order for everyone to assemble in the front hall.

One they’ve all gathered, Zayn walks down the line they’re standing in. He doesn’t see his mystery man’s face among them, and he can feel his heart sinking. Another wrong house. He’s about to tell Louis to bring in the shoe so they can keep up the façade of wanting to return it to the right owner, when suddenly one of the daughters speak up.

“Hang on,” she says. She’s got blonde curls, tied back with a very, **very** colorful scarf, and she’s extremely pretty. If he weren’t already in love, Zayn might be willing to give her a chance. “Mother, we’re missing one.”

“Perrie, what are you talking about?” Lady Edwards asks testily.

“We’re missing a servant,” Perrie says. “Liam’s not here.”

Lady Edward tenses visibly and glares at her daughter.

“He’s not important. He wasn’t even at the ball,” she says harshly. Perrie looks undeterred and starts heading off into another room. “Patricia Edwards, get **back here**!”

“I asked to see your **entire** household,” Zayn says sharply. Lady Edwards takes a deep breath through her nose and looks back at him with a smile that doesn’t reach her eyes. She’s starting to look a little scary, but Zayn doesn’t let it deter him. He has a purpose, and he’s not about to let this woman stand in his way.

A glance behind him tells him that Louis is equally unimpressed with Lady Edwards.

“Of course, I’m so sorry, Your Highness,” she says sweetly.

“ – no, Liam, get **in here** ,” Perrie returns from the other room, dragging a guy covered in soot and dirt from top to toe behind her. She gently pushes him forwards, and even though he refuses to look up, Zayn can still see enough of his face to make his heart skip a beat in his chest.

“Can I see your face, please?” he asks. Liam visibly shakes, but he looks up nonetheless.

Even with all the dirt on his face, Zayn recognizes him immediately. It’s him. It’s definitely him.

“It’s you,” he whispers.

“I’m so sorry,” Liam mumbles and looks back down.

“Why? I’ve been searching for you for three days,” Zayn takes a step closer.

“And I’m probably far from what you imagined I’d be,” Liam sounds close to tears, which breaks Zayn’s heart. He’s about to assure Liam that it doesn’t matter what he is, when Lady Edwards clears her throat.  
“I’m sorry, but I’d like to know what’s going on here,” she says, and Zayn gets the feeling that she’s not sorry at all.

“I found the owner of the lost shoe,” Zayn says curtly. “And I’d like to take him back to the palace with me.”

Lady Edwards sputters, her face going red, and Zayn ignores her entirely. He takes Liam’s hand and gently pulls him towards the exit, with Louis following behind them. Before the leave, Zayn turns back and looks at Perrie.

“Thank you for the help,” he says, and he means it. Perrie smiles and winks at him before walking up the stairs, clearly intent on ignoring her angry mother.

 

Louis decides to sit next to the driver of the coach, to give Liam and Zayn some privacy inside it. Zayn appreciates that.

It takes him a good while to talk it all out with Liam, so there’s not much of what Louis probably expected would happen. For one, Zayn spends a few minutes convincing Liam that his status as a kitchen servant means nothing to Zayn, he doesn’t care, he just wants Liam as he is. Then Liam spends some time explaining exactly how he came to be at the ball, which involves a fairy godfather named Simon and a very large pumpkin that turned into a coach.

But once they get past that, Zayn can’t wait any longer. He’s been waiting almost four days to kiss Liam, and they can sort out technicalities later. So he leans in and kisses Liam hard smack on the mouth. Liam makes a surprised noise but melts into it almost immediately.

When they arrive back at the palace, Louis knocks on the coach door and shouts, “Get yourselves sorted, the king’s waiting.”

Liam squeaks and jumps away from Zayn, but Zayn just laughs, and he can hear Louis do the same.

 

AND THEY LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER.


End file.
